Welcome to Colorful Colorado, where the columbines grow and an independent spirit was predicated by a rugged, ambitious history.

In recent years, the Centennial State also has seen industries including aerospace, food, craft brewing and technology flourish into hubs that attract national attention.

With the idea that this "Renaissance in the Rockies" may be starting to redefine the state, an effort is under way to refresh how Colorado is conveyed to residents and potential visitors.

Earlier this year, Gov. John Hickenlooper unveiled an initiative -- then called brandCO -- to rebrand the state as a means of streamlining some government processes and bolstering tourism, trade and economic development in the process.

BrandCO became Making Colorado, a collaborative, privately funded branding campaign in which Boulder's creative community is playing a significant role.

"No look could possibly encompass the hopes and dreams of every single person that lives in Colorado, but I think what you could do is have something that's inspirational for people," said Dave Schiff, co-founder of Made Movement, a Boulder-based ad agency specializing in campaigns for companies that manufacture goods domestically.

The Making Colorado activities could yield elements a logo, symbol or watermark, as well as a supporting typeface, color palette and a tagline. The brand could be integrated into the more than two dozen state departments, potentially land on license plates and be incorporated into tourism efforts.

John Kieselhorst, left, chief design officer and co-partner, Ramzy Masri, right, designer, and Rachael Donaldson, back, vice president of account production, look over ideas for the Making Colorado branding effort at Made Movement in Boulder last week.
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Mark Leffingwell
)

Kennedy, whose pre-Noodles career involved working in the marketing and "place branding" arenas, was tasked by the governor to bring life to the Colorado brand and project the results across the globe.

In the absence of a brand, he said, perceptions can be built off what non-residents hear from the media coming out of Colorado. While the state boasted an Olympic gold medal-winning swimmer last year, the national eye was on Colorado instead because its devastating wildfires and the Aurora theater massacre, he said.

"I believe a brand can help form an image in people's minds around the world about what Colorado stands for," he said.

And those or other tragic events in Colorado's past that have gained national attention do not epitomize the state, he said.

"To have a product as beautiful and brilliant as Colorado and to define what it stands for and voice that to the world -- what an incredible opportunity," Kennedy said. "Then (Hickenlooper) told me, 'Oh and you'll have no staff and no budget.'"

Individuals and corporations and small businesses supported the program through either providing financial or professional support, Kennedy said. Making Colorado has raised $900,000 toward its $1 million goal to fund an initiative that includes trips across the state and the building of a multimedia website to enable all Colorado residents to join the process.

Having Making Colorado be made by Colorado is critically important, Kennedy said.

"We could do this the easy way or we can do this our way," he said. "You can hire a firm out of New York that specializes in 'place branding' -- I used to work for one -- they'll come out and bada bing, bada boom, there's your brand.

"But that's not us."

Since Hickenlooper's January announcement, brand strategy firm Sterling-Rice Group teamed up with downtown Boulder neighbor Egg Strategy, a consultancy specializing in market research, and the two firms conducted more than 1,000 in-person interviews across Colorado. The firms also collected a plethora of photos and statements from people in the state's 64 counties.

The intent was to have citizens describe or share what they felt epitomizes Colorado, Kennedy said.

Among some of the common themes that emerged from those interviews and photos were: vitality, kinship, economic opportunity, independent spirit and the idea that Colorado residents are "powered by nature," he said.

A brand to inspire

To take the reams of interviews and stockpiles of photos and turn them into something that represents the lifeblood of a very diverse population, the Making Colorado organization needed a creative team.

Hickenlooper approached Dave Schiff, founder of Boulder marketing agency Made Movement, and tasked him with creating an environment in which people from different agencies and backgrounds -- anyone from street artists to formal graphic designers -- could participate in the process.

Schiff was joined in his efforts by Made Movement co-partner John Kieselhorst and fellow ad man Alex Bogusky, the Boulder resident and former Crispin Porter + Bogusky principal who was Ad Age's "Creative Director of the Decade."

About 250 people applied for the Making Colorado creative team and 12 were selected. The dozen receive a small stipend as part of their role, but -- much like others involved in the process -- have donated chunks of their time.

Late last month, the Stanley Hotel in Estes Park hosted the dozen creatives and Making Colorado officials for a weekend retreat as they pored through the lodes of data from the interviews and started tackling various elements of the project.

"Colorado's pretty awesome; there's a lot to work with there," said Berger & Fohr's Berger. "And as exciting as that is, it's a very diverse lot of stuff."

The challenge comes in embracing that diversity and emotion that exists here yet still being able to distill everything down to a cohesive brand, he said.

"Ultimately, we'll have a more streamlined, transparent government through this process and use this as a tool to showcase the resources -- particularly the people, the talent, the opportunity," he said. "...To me, this has to work first and foremost for the residents and the people who have made Colorado what it is."

Public participation is expected to remain a critical element of the process.

The website, makingcolorado.com, was established to serve as a bridge between the creative efforts and the general public. People can submit their ideas and photos with the Making Colorado group and also share those submissions with social channels.

In the coming weeks, the 12-person creative team is expected to produce some rough sketches of potential branding options. Those will be displayed on makingcolorado.com for public feedback and voting in July.

The work will be tailored and the results will be unveiled in August at the Colorado Innovation Network Summit.

"I think a great identity transcends the nuts and bolts of what government is designed to do and turns it into something more aspirational," Made Movement's Schiff said. "If you can make your state function, that's pretty cool. ... If you can inspire someone on top of that, that's a big deal."

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